Fake Mess

Mills Mess too difficult at the moment? In juggling there's nothing wrong with a little bit of cheating. A non-juggling audience will never know the difference between the real Mills Mess & 423 with a carry.

Take all three balls & hold two in one hand & one in the other. Start juggling Two in one hand in a columns pattern, so that you have each ball being thrown & caught in two columns one on the inside & one on the outside. Juggle for a bit then throw the inside ball as a cascade throw over to the other hand. When the cascade throw peaks throw the third ball straight up on the outside & go into two in one hand columns on the other side. Juggle two in the other hand for a bit then make another cascade throw of the inside ball back to the starting hand.

Practise switching from hand to hand in this way. Reduce the number of throws you make before switching the two in one hand juggle to the other side. Count the number of times you throw the outside ball of each two in one hand juggle, start by throwing it three times then make the next throw of the inside ball a cascade throw to the other side. Then go down to two & then finally one. When you get this far the centre ball is thrown back & forth between the two hands.

That is the pattern 423, the fours are the two in one hand throws, the three is the cascade throw & the two is the hold done by one hand while the other is doing the juggling.

Continue juggling 423 & concentrate on the centre ball. At the moment you are throwing it as a cascade throw, you catch it on one side & throw it to the other. For this pattern you need to change this throw around. Catch the centre ball & instead of throwing it across, throw it straight up then with the other arm reach over to the other side & make the catch. From then on throw the centre ball from side to side as before but reach across your body with your arm to make each catch.

Now concentrate on one of the outside throws. As it comes down catch it & scoop the ball down & under the opposite arm as if you were doing an Under the arm throw, but when you get to the other side DON'T LET GO! Instead swing your arm back to the same side in time to throw the ball straight up as a four again. The timing of the swing may be tricky at first. To help you with this focus on the centre ball, the one which is throw from hand to hand. You need to start swinging your hand back again at exactly the same time as you catch the centre ball. Practise the swing on one side & then the other. When you can perform the pendulum swing with both arms every time you catch one of the outside balls you've got the full pattern.